Journal Entry: 5 Changes I (And Maybe You) Need To Make

Journal Entry #2

5 changes I

(and maybe you)

Need To Make

I always want this blog and everything that encompasses it to greet growth with open arms. The last thing I ever want is to feel stagnant, or make you feel stagnant. I welcome the normalcy that each of us are human and will make mistakes, learn and evolve. At this point in the year, I wanted to share few changes that I want to start making, as silly or as serious as they may seem. Each of them cater to bettering different aspects of my life and may be relevant to you, too.

1 - Listen More Compassionately

I am working on being a better listener and not chiming in every 5 seconds. This is mainly a result of me wanting to reaffirm the person speaking, but I’ve realized it’s more disrespectful than anything. I do my best to listen as carefully as possible to what someone has to say but, because I am passionate, I noticed I often interject with words of support, validation, or encouragement. Even though my intentions may be good, my delivery isn’t the most strategic or considerate of the person speaking - I end up endlessly interrupting them. I want to, no matter how excited I may be, hold my tongue until the person speaking is completely done with their train of thought.

2 - Being Selflessly (& Selfishly) Kind

Being kind to others, not because I expect it in return. But, because it fosters a positive and compassionate environment for my mind. I want to shift my focus from wanting someone to do the same for me to doing it because, in the end, it makes me feel better. I want to, before I do pretty much anything for/to anyone, remind myself of my objectives and purpose, so that I don’t get caught up in just receiving.

5 - Setting Boundaries

I will find myself spending a Friday night at home with my laptop open, working on content. In the grand scheme of things, I don’t think there’s anything wrong with that. But, I’ve let it become a habit: I will spend endless hours working, researching, and creating content for the blog and for other assignments at all hours of the day. I’ll often wake up and open my laptop or phone to answer emails or reply to comments. This past week I had an impactful conversation with a close friend who dropped some realness and made me realize that I don’t have a solid structure of separation between my work to-do lists and after-work hours. This is something I know that needs to change to allow for my mind to experience some peace. I want to be more firm in the boundaries that I set for myself and with others. When it’s time to work on something, it’s time to work on it. When it hits 5 (or whatever time I set), the laptop closes and doesn’t open till the next day AFTER I’ve woken up and done a morning routine. I want to open my social media accounts less and only during certain times of the day. I want to set aside specific time for responding to emails and respect that timing.

3 - Drinking Water

WAIT, okay? Hear me out & give me a chance. This is something I’ve actually already started doing religiously for the past 2 months. I used to start my days off with a cup of coffee and wonder why I had the worst headache and famished stomach at 2 pm. All in all: not smart or productive to my health and well being. Instead of starting my day with coffee, I start off with a bottle of electrolyte water (Mom, if you’re reading this, I hope you’re proud) and then I treat myself to my coffee. This has really helped me in starting my day off on the right foot and limiting my chances of feeling lethargic and getting headaches throughout the day.

4 - Downsize My Goals

This does not mean diminishing or downplaying my goals. I mean shifting my outlook on their size/severity. I want to start focusing on micro goals, instead of macro ones. Instead of getting everything and anything done within a day or week, I want to give myself smaller timeframes and smaller tasks lists. By scaling my to-do list and expectations down so that they’re catered to one goal, my belief is that I can deliver more effort and undivided attention till its completion. That is, setting my daily goal to 5 minutes for working on a project, instead of wasting 2 hours sans structure working on it and left feeling defeated and unaccomplished. This is something that my mentor actually suggested to me on a task she assigned me. She suggested I just shoot for working on the task consistently for 5 minutes. I didn’t need to sit for 2 hours cranking out work - which often left me to be more distracted and discouraged. 5 minute sessions actually allowed me to be more attentive and excited to put in work.

What I Wore

Jacket - Zara (I got it on sale a couple months ago and it doesn’t look like they’re selling it any more)